Suspect says he'll change plea in Koch cyberattack

Tuesday

Jul 30, 2013 at 3:00 PM

A Wisconsin man accused of joining a cyberattack staged by the computer hacking group Anonymous on Wichita-based Koch Industries told a federal court Monday that he plans to change his plea.Eric J. Rosol, 37, of Black Creek, Wis., filed a formal notice of his intent to change his plea. A hearing was set for Sept. 11 in federal court in Wichita.Rosol was indicted in March on one federal count each of damaging a computer and conspiracy to damage a computer.His attorney, Kurt Kerns, said they have reached a resolution with the government, but he declined to comment on the plea deal until it is finished.Prosecutors allege in the indictment that Anonymous asked conspirators in February 2011 to undertake a cyberattack using a tool that could send a high volume of repeated requests to various Koch Industries websites. Numerous conspirators complied, and the company's main website, www.kochind.com, crashed.

A Wisconsin man accused of joining a cyberattack staged by the computer hacking group Anonymous on Wichita-based Koch Industries told a federal court Monday that he plans to change his plea.Eric J. Rosol, 37, of Black Creek, Wis., filed a formal notice of his intent to change his plea. A hearing was set for Sept. 11 in federal court in Wichita.Rosol was indicted in March on one federal count each of damaging a computer and conspiracy to damage a computer.His attorney, Kurt Kerns, said they have reached a resolution with the government, but he declined to comment on the plea deal until it is finished.Prosecutors allege in the indictment that Anonymous asked conspirators in February 2011 to undertake a cyberattack using a tool that could send a high volume of repeated requests to various Koch Industries websites. Numerous conspirators complied, and the company's main website, www.kochind.com, crashed.Rosol also is accused of sending a code that damaged the company's computer by "impairing its integrity and availability of data, programs, system and information," according to the indictment, which seeks forfeiture of any equipment used.Court documents do not indicate whether Rosol will plead to those counts, but such court notices typically indicate a deal is in the works for reduced charges.Rosol is free on a $25,000 bond. The court has prohibited him from communicating with the computer hacking group Anonymous while out on bond.